Neymar Jr net worth: All you need to know

Brazilian and Paris Saint Germain superstar Neymar Jr net worth is estimated to be a whopping $220 million in 2022. The 30-year-old remains the most expensive transfer in football history when PSG triggered his FC Barcelona release clause and the French club paid 222 million euros to make him the face of their newest project in 2017. 

The Brazilian footballer is also one of the highest-paid soccer players in the world and continues to be one of the top-earning athletes in 2022. Here is how his net worth has increased over the years.

Neymar Jr net worth: Growth in his football career

Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior was born to Neymar Santos Sr and Nadine da Silva with his official Brazil date of birth being February 5, 1992 in Mogi das Cruzes in the state of Sao Paulo in Brazil. Neymar’s skills while playing football were quite apparent even in his childhood and he learned his trade while playing the famous Brazilian futsal as well as beach football. It was in the tight futsal arenas where he honed his sharp dribbling abilities and flair on the ball.

Neymar’s father, Neymar Santos Sr had noticed his son’s skills at an extremely early age and he took on the role of his development as well as acting as an adviser for him throughout his career. The family decided to put their trust and faith in his football abilities, and shifted to São Vicente in 2003, so young Neymar could test his talent with the best in Brazil at the youth team Portuguesa Santista.

They eventually relocated to Santos that year, with Neymar joining Santos FC, training at the youth academy where the legendary Pele had come up through the ranks. He eventually went on to become the biggest Brazilian promise since the days of Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, earning comparisons with the legendary Pele himself and even leading Santos FC to a Copa Libertadores title in 2011.

Neymar has gone on to live up to that potential he promised in Brazil following his high-profile move to Barcelona in 2013 as well as his dominance with the Brazilian national team, eventually becoming the second-highest goalscorer in the history of the Brazilian team only behind Pele.

Neymar signed for Spanish giants Barcelona in 2013 and received a massive salary hike following his move to Europe. There, he formed a lethal partnership with fellow South Americans Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez and Barcelona, led by the MSN trio went on to conquer the continent. Neymar secured eight trophies during his four years in Catalonia, including the 2015 UEFA Champions League, where he scored the final goal in the final against Juventus.

Neymar then decided to emerge out of the shadows of fellow superstars Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta and he became the most expensive football transfer in history when Paris Saint Germain brought him to the French capital in 2017. His career, since then, has been a bit of a roller-coaster ride. While there has been no shortage of domestic success in France, owing to PSG’s incredible financial strength, Neymar has fallen down the pecking order of the best footballers in the world and has lost his prominence. Injuries haven’t helped him either but Neymar continues to be one of the most marketable and highest-paid footballers on the planet.

Neymar Jr net worth: Football contracts

Neymar signed his first major contract with Brazilian club Santos at the age of 17, and it paid him nearly $1.7 million per year. A year later, recognizing that interest surrounding their latest revelation was growing continuously all over the world, Santos tried to lock down Neymar’s long-term future with a $20 million contract extension. However, the great Brazilian footballer ended up rejecting the offer, well aware, that Europe is where he would find the biggest opponents, and the greatest stage to excel.

He did pen down a short-term contract extension with Santos worth $4 million per year, but continued to explore options with various European heavyweights courting his interest. Barcelona eventually won the race, beating arch-rivals Real Madrid and in 2013, he signed a $119 million with the Catalan club and the mega-deal saw him making an average of $15 million per year in salary. During this period, Neymar also earned an estimated $16 million per year from endorsement deals. That brought his total annual earnings to roughly $30 million between 2013 and 2017.

On August 2, 2017, Neymar shook the football ecosystem and changed it forever following a deal he signed with French club Paris Saint Germain. The lucrative club, backed by the state of Qatar, paid $220 million to lure him away from Barcelona. Receiving a fat new contract, Neymar began to earn a record-breaking $1.02 million per week, roughly $53 million per year in salary alone. Combined with endorsements, bonuses and sponsorships, this brings his total wealth to $90 million during this period.

In May 2021, after months of speculation following Neymar being unhappy and wanting to move to another club, he finally signed another contract extension with PSG which ties him to the club until 2025. In this new contract, he will reportedly earn just short of €37m annually from his PSG basic wage alone. However, the deal also contains various bonuses which can improve the figure significantly, especially if he manages to win the Champions League with Paris Saint Germain.

After he initially signed for PSG, it was estimated that his salary would be worth an astonishing $350m over the course of his first contract, meaning the total cost to PSG including his transfer was roughly $613m.

Neymar Jr net worth (Wealth comparison) vs Messi and Ronaldo

The forward’s salary combined with sponsorship and endorsement deals adds up to a hugely astonishing figure that contributes to Neymar Jr net worth. Forbes reported his 2020 earnings at $96 million for 2020, of which the salary, bonus, and on-pitch earnings were estimated to make up between $70 million and $78 million.

Only Messi ($126m) and Ronaldo ($117m) were reported to have higher total earnings than Neymar among football players last year. Tennis legend Roger Federer ranked above him which made Neymar the fourth-highest athlete in the world of sports for that period.

It is also worth mentioning that on the basis of salary and bonuses alone, Neymar makes more than Cristiano Ronaldo but the Portuguese mega-star earns more money courtesy of his more lucrative sponsorship deals.

There is quite a gap from the big three in football, and Neymar’s PSG team-mate Kylian Mbappe was next on the list in fourth with earnings of $42 million and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah rounded off the top five at $37 million. It must be mentioned that these figures are from 2020 and do not account for changes during the Coronavirus economic landscape as well as recent contract extensions (eg. Mbappe with PSG).

Neymar’s endorsement and sponsorship deals

Just like he had shaken the football ecosystem following his move from Barcelona to PSG, Neymar also had a huge impact on brand deals when he sensationally swapped Nike for Puma. Neymar had an 11-year deal with American sportswear brand Nike that was due to end in 2022, worth an eye-watering $105 million. However, their talks over a renewal broke down.

Neymar has become the latest big face of rivals Puma and he will promote lifestyle, training, footwear and apparel products for the brand. “I grew up watching videos of great football legends such as Pelé, Cruyff, Matthäus, Eusébio and Maradona,” he said.

“These were the kings of the pitch, the kings of my sport. I wish to bring back the legacy that those athletes created on the pitch. They each played in Puma, and each of them created their magic in the king.”

Neymar has worked with some of the biggest companies in the world including the likes of Red Bull, Beats Electronics, Mastercard, DAZN, Electronic Arts, Volkswagen, Tenys Pé Baruel, Lupo, Ambev, Claro, Unilever, Gillette, Santander and TCL.

In 2016, Forbes magazine had estimated Neymar’s earnings from endorsements at $21 million (€18m) annually, making him – based on his Barca salary at the time – the only active footballer earning more money off the pitch than on it.

Meanwhile, Ronaldo and Messi’s endorsements at that point accounted for 36% and 34% of their income respectively, Neymar’s accounted for 61% of his pay.

While that status quo has changed now following his high-profile and lucrative move to PSG, it still speaks volumes about his marketability – largely because of his huge fanbase every Brazil where Neymar’s face and likeness is almost on every product you can think of!

Neymar’s businesses and charities

Neymar has appeared as his own self in two big films, XXX: Return of Xander Cage and Os Parças in 2017. He had also starred as Monje Joao in the TV show Money Heist in 2019, while also being involved in the promotion of the music of the popular Netflix show. He also released his own emojis for download.

A considerable section of Neymar net worth also comes from his online reach and he has a massive follower base of 321 million across the big three social media platforms Facebook (89 million), Instagram (175 million), and Twitter (56.9 million).

Neymar opened the Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr in the city of Praia Grande. The facility aims to improve and transform the lives of children coming from the poor background through educational, artistic, and sporting initiatives that help them get ahead in life. The complex is known to serve over 2500 kids in Brazil and their families.

In 2020, during the middle of the pandemic, he had also donated anonymously five million Brazilian real to charity. He has also contributed to the development and procurement of proper and clean water.

FAQs

What is Neymar’s net worth in rupees?

Neymar Jr net worth is estimated to be around Rs 17,230 crore.

What is Neymar Jr’s salary in 2022?

Neymar is said to make nearly 71 million euros, including bonuses in his contract with Paris Saint Germain.